Sanction Law Issues In Property Transactions
07 March 2024
Sanction law issues can arise in property matters where there is a connection, directly or indirectly, with a sanction sensitive country.
In these cases, not only is there a risk of losing banking services (temporarily or permanently), there is also a risk of prosecution including but not limited to being added to sanction lists.
It is extremely important to be mindful of the presence of these sanction law issues and take specific sanction law advice in relation to the source of funds to protect yourself and your business.
Recent Cases?
Recently, I was instructed to obtain approval from a UK bank for receipt of funds for a British Iranian individual who wanted to purchase a property in the UK.
In this case, our client had sold a property in Iran and converted his funds into gold to protect his assets from depreciation. The client wished to liquidate the gold and bring those funds into the UK. Importantly, the US has sanctioned the entire gold industry in Iran and UK banks are generally very much aligned with US sanctions to avoid heavy penalties. Therefore, Rokhsareh had to review the matter and determine whether there was a risk of sanctions violations i.e. risks to our client’s banking services, if he liquidated the gold and received the funds into his UK bank account.
In this matter, most property law professionals would not be aware of the potential for US sanction law violations. However, such violations and risks would not only threaten the client’s bank account but also the law firm’s UK bank accounts.
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How to Avoid it?
Global sanctions are constantly changing, and it is not possible to identify sanction law issues without a proper and detailed analysis at the time of the transaction. However, the first step is to monitor all matters for any direct or indirect link to sanction sensitive countries such as Russia, Iran, Syria, Cuba, Sudan, etc.
Where a link is found, it is extremely important to refer the matter to a sanction law specialist in order to review and confirm the source of funds and the legality of the transfer.
Whilst it is costly and difficult to deal with these types of matters, it is important to note that, in most cases, the risks can be managed and refusing to assist may amount to unlawful discrimination.
I have worked on hundreds of litigation cases involving UK banks and I currently obtains UK bank approvals for receipt of funds from sanction sensitive countries. I can assist and advise in relation to obtaining bank approvals in property matters involving sanction sensitive countries. Please feel free to get in touch.
Disclaimer
The information provided in this article does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all the information and content in this article is for general informational purposes only. The information on this website is provided without any representations or warranties, express or implied. We make no representations or warranties in relation to the information on this website. To learn more about your rights and the options available to you, please contact me.